More questions follow Wyoming wolf deal

﻿[large thumbnail url=”more-questions-follow-wyoming-wolf-deal” filename=”news” year=”2011″ month=”08″ day=”12″] [thumbnail icon url=”more-questions-follow-wyoming-wolf-deal” filename=”news” year=”2011″ month=”08″ day=”12″] CHEYENNE, Wyo. (Billings Gazette) — Last week’s announcement of an agreement between the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the state of Wyoming to remove the state’s roughly 340 wolves from the endangered species list was a landmark step in resolving a yearslong fight.

But, as all sides have made clear, there’s still a long way to go — and a lot of hurdles to cross — before the deal goes into effect.

The agreement, announced by Gov. Matt Mead and Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, now has to be approved by Fish and Wildlife, as well as state legislators and wildlife officials.

And it’s hard to predict whether all of that will happen, several wildlife and legal scholars say, because Wyoming’s now entering uncharted territory.